Port Stanley Falkland Islands stormy at 10 degrees

Unfortunately, we couldn't dock in Port Stanley due to the stormy weather. Lightning and thunder greeted us early in the morning. Our excursion plan would have been so lovely..............A trip to Bluff Cove Lagoon, a nature reserve for wildlife, where we could have walked among the king penguins and a ranger would surely have told us so much about this pristine nature. Unfortunately, the weather disrupted our plan. Now we are sitting on the ship, drinking tea, reading, playing, learning English, and waiting until there are fewer people working out in the fitness center. The ship will continue directly to Ushuaia, where we expect to dock on Sunday morning.

During the night, we hopped further, 140 nautical miles from the West to the East Falkland Islands. The plan for the day is simply 'Port Stanley', which is the capital. We are not too enthusiastic, as what can one possibly do for 6 hours in such a small place? Adding to that, guests from three other ships are also here ...

Well, today is Christmas Eve, and so the day begins with a small service or Christmas carol singing in the cathedral of Port Stanley. That was quite nice. Then we hop into a shuttle bus that takes us to Gypsy Cove, where we can walk a bit and where there are supposed to be Magellan penguins. We see them right away, a few on a small gravel path, and a larger group on the beach of a cove. This cove is said to be very beautiful (okay, without the sun, it doesn’t look quite as nice), and we walk along it for a while. At some point, we want to turn back, but we see two people coming from the dunes and ask them if continuing would be worth it.

They confirm that it is worth it, and after just a few more meters, we encounter 5 King penguins on the beach. We are overjoyed and fill our memory cards. Next door is a colony of Gentoo penguins (with many chicks), which contributes to our excitement as well. This was definitely a fantastic Christmas surprise; in our joy, we didn’t even notice the sun coming out and we are now quite sunburned.

At some point, we pull ourselves away and head back. We actually wanted to do a longer loop here, but the timing is a bit tight now. We settle for the shorter Gypsy Cove circuit and take some more time to observe the Magellan penguins, of which there are a few more than we saw this morning.

Then we head back to town, refuel ourselves with several liters of cola, and stroll through some souvenir shops and 2-3 streets ... well, there are not many highlights in the usual sense ... but many memorials around the Falklands War of 1982, which we can still vaguely remember. Then we are finished and take one of the last boats back to our mother ship, which will soon lift the anchor and head towards South Georgia ...

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During the night, we changed position from West Falklands to East Falklands. The plan is called 'Port Stanley', the capital of the Falklands. We are not so excited as we cannot imagine what we shall do a whole day in a little village like this, also knowing that guests from three more ships are here as well ...

Well, today is Christmas Eve, and the day starts with a small worship/Christmas carol singing. That was pretty nice in such a remote place. Now, we jump into a shuttle bus to a place called 'Gypsy Cove', where it shall be possible to walk a bit, and see Magellan penguins. The latter ones we see right away, some on a small track, and a bigger group at the beach of a nearby bay. We walk along this beach for a while as it is supposed to be really nice (well, without the sun we can’t see it like that), and just when we consider turning around and going back, we recognize two people coming out of the sand dunes. We ask if it’s worth going on, ...

... and, oh yes, it is. Only a few meters further on, we find 5 King penguins standing/lying on a sandy beach. We are amazed and start filling our memory cards, a nearby colony of Gentoo penguins (with lots of young ones) does its share for this as well. This was a super Christmas surprise, and in all that excitement, we didn’t really recognize that the sun came out ... now we are significantly sunburned.

We stay here for quite a while but have to leave at some point, of course. The original plan was to do a longer loop trail here, but now the time allows only a short version of it - anyway, we take a close look at some more Magellan penguins and take the shuttle back to town.

Now, it takes some liters of cola to revive, afterwards, we walk through some souvenir shops and some streets and recognize that the village itself has not much to offer. The only remarkable things are some memorials around the Falklands War in 1982, which we hardly remember from our younger days.

Finally, we jump into one of the last tender boats to return to our mother ship; soon the anchor is lifted, and we head now towards South Georgia.

From Buenos Aires we set off - with a bit of delay, which is expected - to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego (the southern tip of Argentina). Here we board our ship, which this time is a proper ship and not just a nutshell. Thanks to better motorization, we actually manage to catch a glimpse of the Magellan Penguins residing in the Beagle Channel, bringing our total to 15 of the 18 penguin species seen so far.

With calm waters - and thus no risk of seasickness - we travel over two nights and one day to the Falkland Islands, where on our first day we visit mixed colonies of Black-browed Albatrosses and Rockhopper Penguins. For both species, most of the chicks have already hatched, so we spend a lot of time observing the cute little ones (and, okay, also the adults).

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From Buenos Aires we head on - with some usual delays - to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego on the southern tip of Argentina. Here, we enter our ship (which is this time a true ship and not only a nutshell).Taking Advantage of some more Speed, this time we manage to get a glimpse of the Magellan Penguins Living here in the Beagle Channel - now we have seen 15 of 18 species of Penguins.

In calm seas - and therefore without sea sickness - we travel in 2 nights and a day to the Falkland Islands, where we - on our 1st day here - visit colonies of Black-browed albatrosses and Rockhopper Penguins. For both species, the majority of chicks where hatched already, and so it takes extra time to watch the Little ones (and, of Course, the adults as well).

We had not informed ourselves about the Falkland Islands beforehand and had not booked any excursions. Accordingly, we got off the ship without any expectations. We had to tender again and had to wait for 1.5 hours until it was our turn. Finally, at around 9:30, it was time. Arrived in Stanley, we looked at the options available on site. We were offered a transfer to Gypsy's Cove, where we could see penguins on the beach. Penguins caught our attention immediately, so we took the bus. Arriving at the cove, we were greeted by a breathtaking sight: white sandy beach with blue water, almost like the Caribbean. Only the temperature of 11 degrees and the wind didn't fit, but the sunshine did. We first walked directly along the beach and suddenly saw dolphins playing near the shore. Playfully, they frolicked in the water and we watched them for at least half an hour. It was simply amazing to see something like that. After the beach, we continued along the bay on restricted paths. Restricted because penguins had their burrows everywhere. One burrow was right by the path and we could see two little penguin babies. We could also see many penguins hopping over the rocks or walking through the tall grass. So beautiful! Suddenly, Laura felt sick. At first, she suspected that it was due to not having lunch (we had breakfast at 7:00 and it was already 14:00). So she suggested going back to the city and getting something to eat at the supermarket. Done. But since it didn't get better even after eating, the planned city tour was canceled and we started the return journey. Laura felt worse and worse and unfortunately, we had to wait a while at the tender boats. The tendering itself did not make the nausea better. The wind had picked up, making it a wavy affair. The Canadian woman, whom Freddy had met in the pool and who spoke non-stop, didn't help the situation either. Arriving at the cabin, Laura had to vomit directly. Since she felt a little better afterwards, she ate some dry bread and tried to sleep. But throughout the afternoon, she vomited a total of 6 times and could not keep the smallest sip of water in her stomach, so we decided to go to the ship's doctor in the evening. He gave her an injection against vomiting and medication for the next few days. The COVID test was negative. He also said that Laura should not leave the cabin the next day in order not to infect anyone and that someone would call in the morning to ask how she was doing. No problem, Laura just wanted to sleep and rest.

Day 72 Sea Day

As it turned out, they took the quarantine on board for a day very seriously. In the morning, a table was placed in front of the door to mark the cabin. To prevent us from going out? Or for possible food deliveries? Probably all three, but we didn't find out for sure. In total, the phone rang 5 (!) times that day to inquire about Laura's health condition, and in the morning, a team with masks and gloves came to disinfect the cabin. Laura didn't care much, thanks to the super injection, she slept almost the whole day. Freddy, who was not under quarantine, went to Bingo (won again in Deal or No Deal and of course won nothing in Bingo) and provided Laura with dry rolls and drinks. Throughout the day, she felt significantly better, so the quarantine was lifted in the evening and the table disappeared.

Day 73 Sea Day

We enjoyed the last sea day to the fullest. Freddy went to the sports area and Laura continued to rest. We also used the pools again and enjoyed a delicious three-course menu in the evening.

Day 74 Montevideo

We had no plans for Montevideo either. We like to explore cities on foot, and that's what we did here too. Just get off the ship and go. The city had a few nice houses to offer, but nothing spectacular. By now, the temperature had reached 25 degrees again and we strolled to the city's beach. We also saw a few beautiful parks. Back on the ship, there was a farewell menu in the evening, but we missed the farewell events that we know from other cruises.

Buenos Aires, here we come!

Serious disappointment. We had received our numbered tender cards the evening before so that the transfer to the island with the dinghies would be civilized. We had arrived on schedule and were in front of Port Stanley. Then the captain's announcement came: Due to strong winds and heavy seas, the tender could not take place for safety reasons. So we couldn't leave the ship and only saw the islands from a distance. We drove on earlier than planned.

The cinema showed the Disney film "Jungle Cruise", a kind of female Indiana Jones with visual effects reminiscent of "Pirates of the Caribbean". Funny and entertaining.

In the evening I organized a small wine tasting with a fellow traveler. In one of the bars we tasted a Lambrusco Amabile that I had picked up on a previous shore leave. Yummy!

Unfortunately, my reduced food intake became noticeable afterwards; I felt dizzy and unsteady on my feet. Another passenger kindly walked me to my cabin. I will take a fasting day to allow my digestion to recover.

Last week, we treated ourselves to a little luxury in the Falkland Islands. We traveled by small aircraft to Pebble and Bleaker Island and, finally, to the 'capital' Stanley. On Pebble and Bleaker, there are only four and five permanent residents, respectively, and one lodge each for tourists. So we could enjoy the wildlife almost alone and in peace. Long story short: There are penguins, seals, other birds, and lots of sheep everywhere. The five penguin species here are Gentoo, Magellanic, King, Rockhopper, and Macaroni penguins. Unfortunately, we only saw the South American sea lions out of the three types of seals.

Otherwise, we don't want to say too much, but let the pictures speak for themselves.

Now we are in Santiago de Chile and will soon make our way to the Atacama Desert.